Healthy Green Bean Upkari, an heirloom recipe

Are you one of those who wrinkle your nose, seeing green beans on the dinner plate? Then this is the recipe that will make you love green beans! How do I know? Because I used to be one of those nose wrinklers:)…. until I ate this Upkari, that is.

Upkari, in konkani, means a stir fried vegetable dish, in which freshly grated coconut is added. My version uses very little oil, of course, and  is a simple, easy to make, very mildly spiced recipe. I like the green beans to retain some of their bite and crunch, and combined with the mild spices, finely  diced onion and grated coconut, it is more like a salad. I like it so much that I eat loads of it. And with this healthy Upkari,I don’t have to worry about portion control, which I lack anyway 😦

So here is the list of ingredients-

• about 3 cups of fresh green beans, washed and trimmed.
• 1½ teaspoons oil. Coconut oil tastes yummy in this recipe
• ½ teaspoon urad dal
• 2  dried red chilies
• ½ teaspoon black mustard seeds
• ½ teaspoon cumin seeds
• 1/8 teaspoon hing /asafetida powder
• sea salt to taste
• ½ teaspoon cumin seed powder
• ¾ teaspoon coriander seed powder
• 1 small onion, peeled and finely diced
• ¼ cup freshly grated coconut. I used frozen grated coconut, defrosted

To make the Upkari-

1. In  a food processor, pulse the green beans for a few seconds, in two batches. If using a knife, chop the green beans finely.
2. In a frying pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the urad dal, red chilies, mustard seeds, cumin seeds and asafetida, in that order. The urad dal will be golden brown, releasing its yummy aroma and the mustard seeds will start to sputter.

   

   

3. Turn heat to low. Add the minced/chopped green beans and the  sea salt. Stir fry for about 3 to 4 minutes or until the green beans lose their  ‘raw’ taste. Add the cumin seed and coriander seed powders and stir fry for another 30 seconds.

   

4. Remove from heat and let cool. Just before serving, add the finely diced onion and the grated coconut.

   

   Toss and serve.  The upkari tastes delicious served with parathas and  potato curry.

Wishing you all a wonderfully healthy Wednesday!

Love,

Sandhya